Description The trunk of a Macarthur Palm tree (Ptychosperma macarthurii) with its surface multiple roots formation sprouting out from the bark, which eventually took the form of their crown. Indeed, these surface roots are remarkably beautiful in their multiple irregular, curved, intercrossing, interconnected and varied formations. Macarthur Palms, originally from New Guinea, Australia, are noted for their multiple, slim, ringed grey trunks which are topped with soft green, feathery, flat, broad leaves. They are mostly often seen 10 to 15 feet in height.

Sandra Peña De Ortiz, San Juan, PRMember Since November 2012Artist Statement I have always been attracted to the sublime, the allegorical, and the mystical aspects of the truth, which can only exist in God Himself, as He is the way, the truth, and the life. He has been with me all the days of my life and today I enjoy His sweet presence as He abides in me. As a young college student, at the University of Puerto Rico (UPR), and a graduate student at the University of Cincinnati, I delved into science and research in order to explore the answers to questions still not asked. I focused in biology: the science of life. After obtaining my Ph.D., I sought for post-doctoral training at UC Berkeley an later at UT San Antonio. Currently, I am full Professor at the UPR and my scientific endeavors are focused on the Neurobiology of Memory and Emotions, which I have researched with my students for the past 17 years. However, science is not what defines me. I am happily married and have two dear sons. I have an intimate relationship with God, and my life is dedicated to Him as I enjoy the rich supply of His grace, light, and life.

Today, I am moved to use art as a form of expression. I have not had any formal training in art, but I am beginning to train. Thus, a new form of creativity is blooming in me, flowing out as torrents from my soul and spirit. The problem solving techniques in my conscious and subconscious mind, collected during previous years, as well as the superabundance of human experiences, including surviving breast cancer, are the inherent tools that are indelibly part of me, and are the keys to the creativity, technical abilities, and poetic expressions that are seen in what is not seen within my art.

I have been moved to initiate the development of my artistic creativity in developing art photography fused with wire sculpting. All the wire sculptures used to create my photographic art are part of a personal collection of my original creations. I have called this combination of media: Wire Sculpture-Art Photography Fusion. I also work on other forms of art photography and expect to continue evolving.

My hope and my faith is that my creations serve to elicit specific, yet profound, sentiments, thoughts, and emotions hidden, not readily accessible, within the soul and spirit of the beholders.